Edith (1897-1992) was our grandfather’s sister, and Hill Farmstead Brewery rests upon the land that was once home to her and her 13 siblings. In her honor, this black saison is crafted from American malted barley, German roasted malts, European hops, our farmhouse yeast, and water from our well. Unfiltered and naturally carbonated, this is the ale that I dream to have shared with Edith.

Beer: Reviews & Ratings

Bottle pour at the DTLA bottle share held at Beer Belly in Los Angeles, CA.

Thanks to erichxedge for sharing this one.

Bottled 3/28/13.

Pours a clear dark orange-brown with a foamy khaki head that settles to a partial film on top of the beer. Small streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, grain, earth, yeast, and Brett aromas. Taste is much the same with slightly sour Brett, funk, and fruit flavors on the finish. There is a mild amount of acidity on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer with a tasty Brett and funk presence. (659 characters)

Overall: I see a lot of reviewers saying this is a Brett beer but Brett alone would not account for the sourness here; I think there are other wild yeast things going on and, ultimately side with those who say that the combination of flavors that result does not produce a cohesive whole; glad to try it but would not likely seek it out again

Bottled at the end of March, so only a few months old, shouldn't be too bad. Shared with rudzud.

Pop the bottle and a slow rise of foam up the neck. Pours a decent off white creamy fluffy head that fades at a med pace, spotty lacing, pretty much pitch black beer with no real light getting through.

Overall meh. Obvious infection and with the lower carb and sweetness I wonder how long it's been infected, there's no real saison left. If I could get another bottle of this I wouldn't even review it, but people need to know to drink it now in case their's is also infected. If I somehow find one I'll re-review it. (1,428 characters)

t - Tastes of pine hops, fruity malts, roasted malts, citrus hopsm and some brett. Nice taste, though I like the nose a little bit better. Taste is more dominated by roasted malts in my opinion.

m - Medium body and low to moderate carbonation. Easy to drink.

o - Overall a nice black saison, though not my favorite HF beer or style. Nice mix of hops and roasted malts, and easy to drink. Would personally look to get some of their other bottles first, but wouldn't turn this down if I saw it again. (881 characters)

Received via trade. Served in a Hill Farmstead wine glass. Shared with Paul.

The beer is dark mahogany with a thick, khaki head. The aroma is enticing, with scents of oak, funk, dark fruits, spice. Flavors include red wine, oak tannins, brett, yeast, raisins, plums. Wonderfully complex and fabulous. No surprise there, as Hill Farmstead "keeps comin' up with funky ass shit like every single day" ...Old school reference. Anyhow...I thoroughly enjoyed this. I'm not usually as much of a fan of the darker saisons and wilds, but Edith was a lovely beer. Recommended fo sho. (574 characters)

A - Pours black, but dark red/amber up to the glass. Gorgeous tan head of 2 fingers. Lovely thick, creamy head. Good carbonation coming up. Insanely thick wall of lace and a finger of retention. Metal.

T - Nice funky barnyard yeast. Tart. Starts tart up front with the yeast, some mild dark fruit or chocolate sweetness, and then tart again in the finish. Their yeast really dominates. Dark fruit in the middle comes out when it warms.

M - Good carbonation. Medium body and a lingering tartness.

O/D - Farily one dimensional. The yeast dominates this a whole bunch, and while it's not at all bad, it's hard to get past the simplicity of it. Yet, the simplicity is delicious. (813 characters)

Pour is dark with a tan head. Nose is very light, lemon and citrus with a faint roast. Taste is extremely strong lemon, fairly sour and citrusy. There is a faint roast to it. Strong carbonation and a silky body and puckering citric acid. Very bright citrus, so different than what I thought. (291 characters)

Appearance: black bodied beer with light beige / khaki colored head. Fantastic retention is displayed with a lingering head on top of the black bodied beer. Creamy and silky looking head on the beer. Eventually, the beer drops down to a thin cap and some spotty lacing is left on the glass.

Smell: chocolatey and smokey malts that have a pretty big presence in the nose; contributing a moderate sweetness. Fruity and slightly spicy yeast that brings loads of dark fruits like that of a malty belgian dark strong ale. This has alot of mineral character and earthiness. Hint of leather and oak. This beer has a nose that is very complex and layered; very aeromatic and pleasing. I have never smelt anything like this it is very interesting. I could smell beer this all day long.

Taste: What hell just happened? Every sip I anticipate tasting some sweet malts, but the sweetness is no where to be found, it is almost like trickery of my senses. I expect a moderatly sweet saison judging by the nose, but the sweetness just isnt there in the flavor profile. The sweetness that should be there is dominated by the tartness found in the beer. This beer has a mild almost moderate tartness that tastes like red grapes, berries, cherries, with a decent dose of lemon and citrusy character. Lots of tannins, oak, and signature Hill Farmstead funk. The funk is slightly leathery, earthy, it also has a hint of fruity esters. Hint of smoke and slight roast in the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied beer with moderate carbonation levels. Nice creamy carbonation. Very drinkable which is a surprise considering how robust the aroma and flavor profiles are of this beer. As this beer warms up the body thins slightly and the carbonation goes from creamy to silky.

Overall: This black saison is so different and unique than any saison that I have had. I have only tried a handful of black saisons, but this is a very memorable beer for sure. It is just like a saison, an oude bruin, and a malty dark belgian ale got rolled into a single beer. Then the brett in the beer makes the mouthfeel absolutely outstanding. Edith is probably my favorite black saison that I have drank; Saint Somewhere Surge being in close in second place compared to Edith. Such an original and creative beer; Shawn Hill is a master of brewing beers like this! (2,431 characters)

Second time around this block. Chico1985 shared a bottle generously a few months back.

A- Black bodied ale to many glasses at a meet up with a pale mocha head. Frothy and creamy cap dies over time to a hazy belt. One large web with plenty of drizzle.

S- Roasty grains rather prominent with some months on it with dark cocoa, coffee, slight char and heavily caramelized toasty sugars. Juxtaposition provided by semi tart farmhouse yeast with lemon and spicy tones.

T- Tartness becomes an integral part of the balance here and it acts to bring the roast influence down a bit. Hints now of cocoa, caramel, toasted nuts and roast barley. Hard to pick out obvious notes from the yeast but pepper, cooking herbs, lemon and vinous grapes come to mind.

MF- Dried out for the most part with a medium tartness and a silky, frothy consistency to the medium body. Carbonation lands on the high side.

Darker than the last time I had it seems but the blend of tart yeast and roastiness stands tall. Dark Saisons are always an interesting take on the style and throwing some tartness in actually works well for me. (1,104 characters)

The flavor follows with that tart cranberry juice and cherry note up front. However, it's restrained and towards medium tartness. The middle has a handful of blackberry, raspberry, all kinds of slightly tart and sweet berries. Then onto a surprisingly robust roasted character with cocoa, milk chocolate, and even towards the richness of heavy roasted coffee or charcoal.

I really enjoy this "sour porter/stout" style. This is one of the best I've had. It tastes maybe in between an oud bruin and a porter. This is exceptionally interesting and delicious as a full palate experience. (745 characters)

Smell: Funk comes out first but is subtle, not dominating, also green apple, lemon, citrus. The brett comes through with a nice balance. This one almost smells like a lite version of a wheaty gueuze - very interesting and definitely pleasant and balanced.

Taste: Starts with a little bit of tartness and brett, which is followed by some citrus and apples and finishes off with light roasted malts and some grassy flavors. Very complex and layered - this one is interesting! There is no doubt about it that this one is delicious and worth pondering and enjoying all of its complexities.

Overall: This is a great version of a dark saison (my first dark saison). This is absolutely delicious fresh, and I admit I have no idea what age would do to it. To me, it is a compilation of several different styles into one including lambic, brown ale, pale ale, wild ale among others. It all comes together with surprising balance to taste amazing. Highly recommended. (1,292 characters)

Medium brown pour that settles into the glass with a dark brown body and a light tan head. Lots of sticky head residue all over the glass. Aroma includes roasted malt, sour funk, some earthy cocoa, and hints of white grape. Very complex nose. I was expecting dark roastiness to dominate with some peppery flavors mixed in, but this one has a prominent sour component to it. More like a dark sour with lots of earthiness, hints of cocoa, earthiness and pepper. Medium-high carbonation with a medium body. I'm not huge on dark saisons, but this one is a whole other animal. Huge flavor and tartness, which makes this more than just a standard dark saison. (653 characters)

Opens lightly tart. Smoke, roast, Saison yeast and other spices. More burnt malt tartness in the middle and end. Finishes roasty bitterness with the same yeasty, peppercorn bitter aftertaste. Ok but the flavor combination just doesn't really work for me here.

Light bodied with moderate to high carbonation. Prickly and light in the mouth. Goes down aggressive and frothy. Messy finish with a moderately dry, lingering aftertaste. Pretty good.

I've never been a fan of light beers made dark (Black IPAs, Dark Saisons). That being said, I can't imagine a more well-made Dark Saison than Edith. The dark, roast notes don't quite work with the refreshing spice flavors. However, this is nicely tart and well integrated. Worth trying but if you don't like this style, this won't change your mind. (1,206 characters)

sweet and tart dark fruit. very one dimensional and simple. judging from earlier reviews this had more saison characteristics but that is not the case now. barely any funk, zest, spice, etc. but, it was delicious.

light body, mild to moderate carbonation.

possibly infected, but in a great way. this was adored by everyone. (454 characters)